1885 - 1977
Unable to make a living as an artist locally, H. J. Reynolds returned to London as a commercial artist. He exhibited at the London Salon around 1918, and exhibited a Welsh scene with the British Watercolour Society in Blackpool in 1923.
Reynolds finally settled in Halstead, where he became a well known character. Affectionately known as 'Harry', he was always busy painting or writing, and wrote several plays, and a book on painting for beginners. He could often be seen walking or sketching in the Halstead area, and with his trilby and horn-rimmed glasses, he became a familiar local figure. He used to say that he was never paid more than ten pounds for a picture.
(Sources: the artist's obituary in the Halstead Gazette, Mr. Alfred Shannon, and others).